Joel Peters-Fransen

Partner Tax

Bay Area – San Francisco +1 415 439 1320

Los Angeles – Century City +1 310 552 7397

Practices

Overview

Joel advises investment fund sponsors on the federal income tax matters relevant to all aspects of their business. His practice includes advising clients on fund formation and structuring, sponsor liquidity and minority investment transactions, fund- and sponsor-level tax considerations arising from investments, mergers, and acquisitions, and sponsor-level economic and tax planning and structuring.

Joel has substantial experience advising on GP-led fund restructurings and continuation fund transactions, including as the lead tax partner for Clearlake Capital Partners’ Icon I - Icon V transactions, two of which, Icon I and Icon IV, were recognized by Private Equity International as the Secondaries Deal of the Year for the Americas for 2020 and 2021, respectively.

Joel has experience advising sponsors and investors on the tax considerations relevant to a wide variety of asset strategies, including private equity, venture capital, hedge funds, secondaries, real estate, crypto, energy, credit, distressed and special situations. He has advised asset managers with less than $100 million AUM to over $80 billion in AUM.

Joel previously worked as a tax counsel at a major U.S. multinational company.

Experience

Andreessen Horowitz (a16z)

in the formation of its third Cultural Leadership Fund (CLF III)

AE Industrial Partners

in its strategic investments by Bonaccord Capital Partners and funds managed by Wafra Inc
in the formation of a continuation fund for its AE Industrial Partners Fund I

Audax Group

in the formation of a $1.7 billion continuation fund for its Audax Private Equity Fund IV
in the formation of its Audax Private Equity Fund IV

Aurora Capital Partners

in the formation of its Aurora Capital Fund VI
in its strategic minority investment by Bonaccord Capital Partners

Clearlake Capital Group

in the formation of its Clearlake Capital Partners VI, with more than $7 billion in commitments
in the formation of its $14.1 billion Clearlake Capital Partners VII
in its single-asset secondary transactions of Icons I through V

Climate Adaptive Infrastructure

in the close of its inaugural fund, Climate Adaptive Infrastructure Fund LP, raising more than $825 million in equity

HGGC

in the formation of HGGC Fund IV

FTV Capital

in the formation of its $1.2 billion FTV VI
in the formation of $2.3 billion FTV VII

Francisco Partners

in the closing on nearly $17 billion in capital commitments between its $13.5 billion flagship fund, Francisco Partners VII, L.P., and its $3.3 billion Francisco Partners Agility III, L.P. fund
in the formation of its $7.45 billion Francisco Partners VI
in the formation of its Francisco Partners VII

Marlin Equity Partners

in its strategic minority investment by Blackstone
in the formation of its a €675 million Marlin Heritage Europe II
in the formation of its Marlin Heritage III

Patient Square Capital

in the formation of its inaugural fund, Patient Square Equity Partners (PSEP), with approximately $3.9 billion in total committed capital

Seaside Equity Partners

in the formation of its second private equity investment fund, Seaside Equity Partners II

Serent Capital

in the formation of its Serent Capital Fund V

STG Partners

in its strategic minority investment by Petershill

Turning Rock Partners

in its structured minority investment by Investcorp

Vista Equity Partners

in the formation of its Fund VII at its hard cap of $16 billion
in a variety of strategic sponsor-level transactions

Quiet Capital

in its sponsor-led fund recapitalization of Venture Fund I and Quiet Growth I

Tax Counsel, Cargill, Incorporated, 2016–2019

Associate Attorney, Tax, Kirkland & Ellis LLP, 2010–2016

Thought Leadership

Seminars

Panelist, “Tax Issues Arising in Secondary and Continuation Funds,” American Bar Association Section of Taxation, May Tax Meeting, May 5, 2023.

Panelist, “What Profits? Gross Income Allocations for Carried Interest/Performance Allocations in Private Funds,” American Bar Association Section of Taxation, May Tax Meeting, May 4, 2023.

Panelist, Tax & Regulatory Updates, Kirkland & Ellis Liquidity Solutions Academy, September 22, 2022.

Panelist, “Movin’ on Up: Is indexing basis for inflation worth a fresh look?”, American Bar Association Section of Taxation, May Tax Meeting, May 14, 2022.

Panelist, “Section 1061: Clearing the Three-Year Hurdle,” American Bar Association Tax Section Virtual 2020 Fall Tax Meeting.

Panelist, “U.S. Shareholder Basis in Foreign Corporations Post-Tax Reform,” American Bar Association Tax Section, 2019 Mid-Year Meeting.

Publications

Changing Landscape for Management Fee Waiver Arrangements of Private Sponsors: Proposed Regulations on Disguised Payments for Services Pose Problems (February, 2016) - Taxation and Regulation of Financial Institutions (co-authored with Dan Meehan).

Case Comment, Cuomo v. Clearinghouse Association, Harvard Law Review, Vol. 122 (2009).

The strong metric dimension of graphs and digraphs, Discrete Applied Mathematics, Vol. 155(3) (2007) (co-authored with Ortrud Oellermann).

The Metric Dimension of Cartesian Products of Graphs, Utilitas Mathematica Vol. 69 (2006) (co-authored with Otrud Oellermann).

Recognition

The Legal 500 United States, International Tax, 2020

Credentials

Admissions & Qualifications

California
Illinois
Minnesota

Education

Harvard Law SchoolJ.D.magna cum laude2010
Harvard Law Review
University of TorontoM.Sc., Mathematics2007
University of WinnipegB.Sc., MathematicsHons2006
Governor General's Silver Medal (graduated first in class)